William B. Fleming

FLEMING, BOGGS, KENT

Posted By: Fran Hunt, Volunteer
Date: 10/3/2001 at 13:43:36

From the Portrait and Biographical Album of Jefferson and Van Buren Counties – 1890
WILLIAM B. FLEMING
William B. Fleming, Clerk of the courts of Van Buren County, has been connected with that position either as superior officer or as deputy for eleven years. He is a resident of Keosauqua and is numbered among its representative and influential citizens. Mr. Fleming was born in Franklin County Pennsylvania, on December 30, 1838, and is a son of Charles and Margaret Boggs Fleming. In his boyhood he manifested a spirit of perseverance and energy, which have been among his important characteristics throughout life. Not content with the limited educational advantages, which he had received, he set to work to acquire the money with which to continue his studies, and in that manner paid his tuition in an academy, where he became proficient in all the English branches. He then turned his attention to school teaching, and was quite successful in the prosecution of that profession, but abandoned it at the breaking out of the late war.
Among the first to respond to the President’s call for troops to put down the rebellion in its infancy, was William Fleming. Hardly had the guns of Ft Sumter ceased their reverberations until, as a member of Company D, Twenty-fifth Ohio Infantry, he donned the blue. The date of his enlistment was April 27, 1861, and with his regiment, he was mustered into service at Columbus Ohio where the troops remained a short time, after which they were forwarded to West Virginia. Their first duty was the guarding of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad near Grafton and the first engagement in which they participated occurred at Briar Hill opposing the rebel forces under General Lee. About this time company D. was transferred to the Twelfth Independent Ohio Battery; in fact, it became the nucleus of the same. At its organization Mr. Fleming was commissioned Second Lieutenant, and soon afterward was promoted to be First Lieutenant. This battery participated in a number of important engagements, including the battles of Franklin and Jackson and the second battle of Bull Run, where it took the field one hundred and fifty-five strong, but returned with only sixty men. Besides this great loss of life all their horses and guns were captured. With his command, Mr. Fleming fought at the battles of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, after which, in the winter of 1863, he resigned on account of ill health. As soon as he had somewhat regained his usual strength, he once more enlisted as a private in his former command, joining the battery at Nashville Tennessee, whence the forces were sent to Murfreesboro, where they remained until the close of the war, being mustered out of service on July 10, 1865.
On the cessation of hostilities and the restoration of peace to the country, Mr. Fleming returned to his home in Ohio but in the spring of 1867 came to Van Buren County Iowa and located in Milton, where he followed his old profession of teaching. Some twelve years later he abandoned that pursuit having been appointed, in January 1879, to the position of Deputy Clerk of the Court, under James Gillespie. For six years he held that office and then received the nomination for Clerk of the Court, to which he has three times been elected, and when his present term shall have expired will have been connected with the office for twelve years, a fact which certainly indicates that his duties have ever been discharged in a prompt and faithful manner and to the satisfaction of all concerned. He attends to his business in a quiet and unassuming manner, but through his fidelity to ever trust has won hosts of friends. Socially, he is a member of the Masonic fraternity, belonging to Keosauqua Lodge, No. 10, A.F. & A.M. and to Moore Chapter, No. 28, R.A.M.
On March 11, 1872 in Van Buren County, Mr. Fleming was united in marriage with Miss Florence Kent, daughter of Daniel Kent, of Ft Madison. They have now a family of three children living, two sons and one daughter—Carl, Craig and Ethel.
I am not related and I am posting this biography for those who may find this person in their family history.